Some of us still have to frikken work which means having to travel to far flung shores and get beasted on kites with small boards in big waves in hot sun. Gutted but somebody had to do it, consider it supreme self sacrifice. Interesting rumour out here however concerning North Sails and North Sails wind and kitesurfing divorcing much to my delight.

Some of us still have to frikken work which means having to travel to far flung shores and get beasted on kites with small boards in big waves in hot sun. Gutted but somebody had to do it, consider it supreme self sacrifice. Interesting rumour out here however concerning North Sails and North Sails wind and kitesurfing divorcing much to my delight.

Yep, I saw that on the parallel universe... although that place has gone to the dogs - it’s all foilers vs the abashed over there. No space left for step gybing, north sails rigging and fanatic riding grooveriders to seek advice and be condescended to.

Anyway, no... I don’t think for one minute they’ll invest in the windsurfing brand and start up a new loft.

Don’t boards and more own Arrows - that’s surely a legacy brand worthy of renewal?

Well I finally got her on the water today in nearly trapezing weather, we had a sunny easterly and with the tide on the shove just enough to ease into the trapeze and check if my efforts to keep the plate down have come to fruition.
I can't say it comes naturally to me, i still have issues without a boom to hold onto and can't quite work out where the stick and mainsheet go, how high the rings should be, but we muddled about.

From the off I turned to kick the trailer up the beach, turned back round to see her sail off on her own and had to run then swim hard for it. Good news bad news really, good news it's stable even without the plate, bad news if I ever fall out of it.

It's a lively ride not as easy as I was expecting, still a few control line issues and I'm not happy to have the cleating bit, it cost me a swim in what should have been a tame gybe, then the rudder fell off while the boat was turtled so it was a fair few minutes messing about with the boat upside down trying to get the rudder back on, then it didn't come up as quick as I'd have expected, especially with the main still cleated and the kicker on, but we live and not learn....

It's now been blooded, literally I gashed a thumb so there's blood on the sail and the war begins, it's going to be an interesting summer, seems to go alright though, didn't feel at all compromised paced alongside a Vario for a bit and she lives with that OK, time will tell, forecast for wind tomorrow we'll see what the race environment brings, but today was fun, the bits where I was upright and the odd time when i trapped off the footsteps, not enough to get on the side today. I still haven't totally cured the plate coming adrift and floating up, more tape required and i had another issue with the trap lines I'm frankly to embarrassed to even discuss, just me f**king things up that were perfectly OK to start with.

Sounds like the day I have had, I converted my Mirror back to Aft main, which I have never mastered and still haven't.

I gashed my thumb too, a nice deep cut.

First the Gaff fell dropping on my crews head, then followed every comedy event you get in sailing, including really violent collision with a Laser at full chat, "T" boned us and knocked a hole in side, luckily above the water line, impact was so violent it blew bungs out of side tank, we finished up buried in a tree.

Laser driver was appalled at what happened, fairly new sailor, quite good though, couldn't understand why his boat wouldn't turn, he had helm hard over but he was heeled so far over in a gust boat wouldn't turn, had a good laugh about it, wanted to paint boat anyway.

The cleating thing, maybe wouldn't have saved the gybe but play with the cleat and block height relationship (I assume you are off the floor and haven't gone off boom).

I expect your Contender boys are pretty finickity about it. I have mine tweaked so that the sheet has to be down within a few inches of the deck to cleat, any tension from me higher and it just pops out. You don't want to be out and down on the wire waving your arm in the air like you're trying to hail a cab to uncleat.

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